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Community groups and superintendent urge protections for immigrant students after classroom privacy concerns
Summary
A series of community speakers at the Baltimore County Public Schools board meeting on Feb. 11 pressed the district to adopt clearer policies, staff training and multilingual communications to protect immigrant students and families after an Overlea High School teacher publicly offered to share student names with ICE, according to several speakers.
A series of community speakers at the Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS) board meeting on Feb. 11 pressed the school system to adopt clearer policies, staff training and multilingual communications to protect immigrant students and families.
Edwin Perez, chair of the Multilingual Community Partnership, said schools must ensure student privacy and provide multilingual communication channels, and urged “extensive training for all school staff on the rights of immigrant students and families.” Lisa Los Santos, director of Casa Baltimore Central Maryland, said a recent incident at Overlea High School — where a teacher publicly offered to share students’ names with Immigration and Customs Enforcement — made urgent the need for district-wide guidelines to protect immigrant students’ personal information.
The community calls came before the superintendent’s report, in which Superintendent Dr. Rogers described steps BCPS has taken to align guidance with the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), to post vetted resources online and to provide principals with training and Office of Law and Office of Safety support. Rogers said immigration status is not part of BCPS enrollment determinations and that federal laws protect education records; she added that BCPS staff follow local board policy and superintendent rules on conduct and privacy.
Rogers told the board that Maryland ICE Director Ellison told state superintendents that Maryland’s ICE operations are “target enforcement actions only outside of schools,” and she said the director provided a direct contact line for superintendents. Rogers said BCPS has procedures for verifying any adult who appears at a school and that staff will involve the Office of Law and Baltimore County Police when needed to verify identity and purpose.
Speakers asked the board to take additional steps: a multilingual media campaign restating the district’s commitment to inclusion; clear, efficient protocols for contacting immigrant families in their native languages; regular training in confidentiality and cultural sensitivity; and formal partnerships with community organizations to provide wraparound supports. Several speakers framed the need as general to all students’ trust in educators, saying students learn best when they feel safe.
The board did not take a formal vote this evening on a new policy; Chair Lichter said she had asked the Policy Review Committee to consider a policy to protect immigrant students and ensure schools remain safe and equitable. Rogers said any reported incidents are investigated and that consequences follow due process when staff break policy.
The board meeting included other public comment items and a budget work session; members of the public were reminded that the public comment period is not the forum to raise individual student personnel matters, and that three-minute limits apply to speakers. The superintendent and board members said they would continue outreach and report back as additional guidance or actions are developed.
